


I like you (a latte)

by intheKnickoftime



Category: Purple Hyacinth (Webcomic)
Genre: (on purpose), (this is Kym's idea of flirting), Coffeeshop AU, F/M, Modern AU, baristas getting names wrong, complete and utter fluff, drabble I wrote to try and clear my block
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-25
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:42:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 974
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24377440
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/intheKnickoftime/pseuds/intheKnickoftime
Summary: In which Kym is a new barista at Will's favorite coffeeshop, who seems hellbent on purposely messing his name up.And Will most definitely does not develop a crush. No way. That would be stupid.
Relationships: Kym Ladell/William Hawkes
Comments: 14
Kudos: 66





	I like you (a latte)

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: Kym is the barista at a coffeeshop, and always screws Will's name up on purpose.  
> The idea of her unrepentantly butchering Will's name was too good to pass up.
> 
> bad puns for titles? yes indeed. I refuse to apologize.

**_Monday._ **

“Number 215- order for Willame!” the barista’s voice rang out. Will glanced down at his receipt with a sigh. Right number, wrong name. He supposed this wasn’t a complete surprise- he’d heard countless other butchered names in his time coming here. 

(the date of February 22, XX26, would forever live in infamy as the day Lauren’s name had been called as “Karen,” and the day she stopped accompanying him on their morning coffee runs in protest.)

Will rose from the bench he’d been waiting at, too tired to correct the barista today. He accepted his coffee with a brief “thank you” and departed. He’d been frequenting this coffeeshop often enough that he’d hoped the baristas would recognize him by now- though there was a first time for everything, he supposed. 

It was probably a one-time fluke, he reasoned. Not worth getting upset about. 

\---

**_Tuesday._ **

“Order for Wilhelm!”

It was the same barista as yesterday- and she was new, Will realized. ‘Kym,’ according to her nametag. She had short, messy dark hair, tawny eyes, and hands that never seemed to stop moving. 

Also a smile that seemed too wide to be appearing this early in the morning. Will found himself unable to maintain his tired frown in the face of that grin.

“William, actually,” he clarified, reaching out for his coffee.

“Oh!” Kym gasped, her eyes widening apologetically. “So sorry about that- I could’ve sworn I heard you say Wilhelm. I’ll get it right next time.”

“No worries,” he responded, turning for the door. “Have a nice day.”

\---

**_Friday._ **

“Order for Wallace!”

Kym’s eyes met his. It would have appeared perfectly innocent if not for the presence of her grin. Not the bright one from yesterday, though- this one was sharper, more knowing. Will glared right back at her.

She was doing this on purpose. Despite her apologies, Wednesday he had been “Willard” and Thursday he had been “Wesley.” The increasingly ridiculous butcherings of his name had even led Will to beg Lauren to go in his stead- but she continued to refuse to set foot in the place after the Karen incident. And so today? Will was Wallace.

He maintained eye contact with Kym during his whole walk to the counter, and as he wordlessly accepted his coffee. He took an experimental sip- at least _that_ part of his order was correct.

Kym smiled at him again, and Will was mildly horrified to find that her smile made something turn over in his chest. 

No way did he have a crush on this name-butchering barista. Unacceptable.

He hurried from the coffeeshop a bit quicker than usual.

\---

**_Saturday._ **

“Order for William!”

Will looked up, startled, to see a different, non-name-butchering barista standing at the counter.

His “thank you” was entirely heartfelt, but for some reason he found himself frowning down at his impeccably-made latte.

_No,_ he was _not_ missing having his name butchered by a certain obnoxiously upbeat barista.

Absolutely not.

\---

**_Tuesday._ **

“Order for William!”

Fine. Maybe he missed it _a little bit._

\---

**_Thursday._ **

“Order for Wilson!”

Will looked up, startled, to see Kym holding his coffee aloft.

“You again,” he grumbled, trying to ignore the reappearance of the weird twisty feeling in his chest. “Have a nice day, _Kylie._ ”

Kym stared at him for a moment, then burst out laughing.

“What?” Will demanded.

“Nothing at all,” Kym wheezed, handing over his coffee between bouts of laughter. “Just- that’s- _Kylie_ is the best you’ve got? Nice try, I suppose,” she said, reaching out to pat his hand in mock-sympathy.

“Don’t patronize me,” Will huffed, frowning down at her for a moment longer. As he turned to leave, he heard her gasping to recover. He also heard her _correctly_ pronouncing the name of the customer following him.

 _Why me?_ He wondered, rolling his eyes skyward.

\---

Will stared into the swirling surface of his latte, decidedly _not_ thinking about Kym.

Attempting to, at least. Mostly failing.

He remembered her impish grin and tawny eyes.

She was sort of pretty, he supposed. No harm in admitting that. So what if he acknowledged that she was aesthetically pleasing? It didn’t mean anything.

Neither did admitting that he liked it when she smiled at him, and liked the sound of her laugh, and kind of wanted to make her laugh like that again-

-oh no.

He _did_ like her. Kym, the name-butchering barista.

_How had this happened?_

He buried his face in his hands.

\---

**_Saturday._ **

“Order for wi- wait a second-”

Will choked back a laugh at the confusion in Kym’s voice. She scanned the shop, as though looking for an explanation to present itself.

“It’s pronounced ‘will you go out with me,’” he said, standing up. He thrust his hands (when had his palms started sweating?) into his pockets and strode up to the counter, meeting Kym’s shocked expression with a tentative smile.

Someone else in the shop burst into applause.

Kym started to laugh. But this laugh was a new one- a nervous, almost disbelieving one.

“I was sure you’d hate me by now,” she said. 

“I’m rather mystified by it myself,” Will said. “But- I don’t know. You’re kind of okay, I guess. Though your pronunciation skills need some work.”

“Maybe you can help me with that- what was your name again?” she was smiling in earnest now, and Will knew that this was ridiculous, that they were holding up the line, but he couldn’t bring himself to stop smiling.

More people joined in the applause. Someone wolf whistled.

“I- kind of have work right now,” Kym said, looking uncharacteristically sheepish. “But my shift ends at three.”

“I’ll see you then?” Will said.

“Count on it, Willame.”

\---

They were both idiots.

But, Will reflected as he walked down the street, maybe a little idiocy was okay every once in a while.

He smiled into his latte.

**Author's Note:**

> I needed some fluff, and I hope this caters to any of you who'd been needing some as well. <3
> 
> Coming up with butcherings of the characters' names was incredibly fun- thank you to some discord folks for suggesting "Karen."


End file.
